Pavel Bucha received a call he had been waiting for and working towards for a lifetime, a few weeks ago. The 28-year-old midfielder in his third year with FC Cincinnati received an official call-up from the Czech National Team for the first time, and was doing so at perhaps the most important time possible for his homeland.
With the UEFA World Cup Qualifying playoffs on the calendar, Bucha was called in to his national team side to help them take on Ireland and (eventually) Denmark, with the winner of the qualifying tournament securing their spot in the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Czech National Team had not qualified for the World Cup since 2006, and during this window, Bucha and his teammates made history of their own by defeating both of their opponents and securing their spot in the tournament later this summer in Canada, Mexico and the United States.
“It was a great experience, one that I'm obviously super happy about and proud of,” Bucha said of the achievement after returning home to Cincinnati from Europe.
“We did it, and it was great to see all the people there at the stadium and around Czech Republic celebrating with us and sticking together. That’s a great achievement.”
The qualifying playoff was held in Prague, giving extra special meaning and celebration when the job was done. Both matches, though, went down to the wire as the hosts first defeated Ireland in a penalty shoot-out before then defeating Denmark in a penalty shoot-out to clinch their spot.
Bucha, unfortunately though, was not selected for the roster in either match.
“On the other hand, I was a little bit, I don't know, frustrated or disappointed that I didn't really get to contribute. That I just be there. I was part of the team, yes. I was training, preparing for both matches, but at the end, I didn't make it to that final match squad. For both games I was watching in the stands. So that was kind of sad to me,” Bucha explained after training last week, after returning to Cincinnati.
“But other than that, I'm super happy and proud of our nation. After 20 years, being at the World Cup again, that's great.”
After celebrating with his teammates and countrymen for their achievement, Bucha returned to FC Cincinnati and reentered the starting lineup immediately despite a grueling travel schedule to return home. The midfielder arrived near midnight local time on Wednesday and was training with the club on Thursday morning.
“It was a quick turnaround. I came back on Wednesday night, was with the team again on Thursday but I was still in recovery mode. Even though I didn't play anything there, that's a long travel from Czech Republic and I was kind of tired after that, so I need to be smart with training,” Bucha explained.
Despite the travel, he hardly missed a beat as the Cincinnati Iron Man – who has led the team in minutes played, matches appeared in and distance covered on the pitch in each of his two seasons full with FC Cincinnati – scored in his return match against New York Red Bulls; two days after returning from international duty to mark his first goal of the 2026 season.
The feeling of being left off the roster in Prague and the desire to get on the field seemed to play a positive role for the Czech midfielder; he says that feeling helped fuel him.
“I felt good. I felt hungry because, as I said, I didn't play,” Bucha explained. “So when you are not in that match, when you don't have that kind of match feeling where you are excited to be on the pitch, then you miss it. So I missed that so much, even though it was just one week, but I missed it and I felt good. I'm glad that I scored, I think that hunger helped me there.”
“Pavel [Bucha] played pretty well. I mean, the goal he takes very well…you never question his work rate and his commitment,” FC Cincinnati Head Coach Pat Noonan said after Bucha's performance despite the mileage he logged earlier that week.
With the 2026 FIFA World Cup getting closer and closer each day, Pavel Bucha has now put himself in a position to help his country at the game's highest international stage. So with that opportunity now available, FC Cincinnati’s reliable Czech midfielder says he will be looking to continue on that path as we approach this summer.
“Right now I will be doing it all again,” Bucha says. “Working hard, playing hard for Cincinnati and hopefully I get a call up again for the coming summer. But that’s only possible if I do the work for us. We are going through hard times right now, but we have to stick together and turn things around. I want to help do that.”
